Marcellus the Shale

I have been reading up on hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, lately.  (And by "reading up" I mean skimming articles and looking at pictures.  The link is mostly picture.  Click it!)  My fascination stems from the possibility that Steubenville might benefit economically from anticipated fracking in Ohio.  If successful, it could transform this ghost town into something resembling the prospering city it once was.

I learned, through my reading and picture-gazing, that I currently sit atop the Marcellus Shale.  Which sounds like the distant Roman cousin of Marcel the Shell.  An appropriate relationship, since shale and shells are related.  Also, radioactive.  Shale more than shells on that count, but maybe radioactive exposure explains why Marcel acts so un-shell-like.